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Literature

Interactive Reading Practice


Benjamin Banneker

In 1731, a boy named Benjamin Banneker was born. He would do many things to help shape the United States of America.

Banneker was born in Maryland on November 9, 1731. His grandfather and father were slaves. His father, Robert, had bought his own freedom. Robert then married a woman named Mary. She was a freewoman. A freewoman is not a slave. At that time, if your mother was a slave, then you were a slave, too. Because Banneker's mother was not a slave, Banneker was not a slave.

There were many things that slaves were not allowed to do. They could not leave where they lived without permission. They could not go to school. They could not learn to read. Slaves were paid very little for their work. Sometimes they were paid nothing at all. It took a long time for them to buy their freedom. Many of them could not even afford to buy their freedom.

Banneker was lucky. One summer a teacher came to the area and started a small school. The teacher taught Banneker how to read. But the teacher left after only a few summers. Then Banneker started working as a farmer. He grew tobacco. There was no time to go to school after that. He did not stop learning. He had learned how to read, so he could read and learn on his own. He read books on history. He read stories. He even read math books. He found that he really liked reading and learning.

Banneker was good at math and science. He figured out how to use ditches and dams to control the water on his farm. He was so good at it that even if it did not rain, his fields were well watered. He also liked to tinker. He would find things, take them apart, and put them back together. He did this once with a pocket watch. He used what he saw to make a wooden clock. He made the clock when he was thirty. It was still working forty-five years later.

Banneker is most famous for what he did later in life. When he was fifty-seven, a friend gave Banneker some books. Banneker read these books. They taught him many things about math and surveying. Surveying is used to map land. People use maps to plan cities.

One of the places that Banneker mapped out was called the Federal District. Today, it is called Washington, D.C. Banneker used what he read to help plan our nation's capital. He was helping plan the city when the man he worked for quit. The man took the plans with him. Banneker had to write down the plans from memory. He did such a good job that the government did not have to ask anyone else to map the land.

Another one of Banneker's favorite subjects was astronomy. After his parents died, he built a cabin on the farm. It had a skylight. He could look through it. He wrote down what he saw in the sky. He did this a lot. Soon, he had a lot of information. He used his math skills and what he read about astronomy to figure out the way the moon moved around the earth. He also figured out that the stars moved in a certain pattern. He figured out when eclipses would happen. One type of eclipse happens when the moon moves between the sun and Earth. In 1758, Banneker predicted when an eclipse would happen.

Banneker is also known for writing an almanac. He made lists of everything that he saw in other almanacs. He also used what he knew about math and astronomy. He looked at all the things he learned about the stars and moon. He wrote these things in the almanac. He also included medical information.

Why are almanacs important? Almanacs were some of the first books made. People used them as calendars. Sailors read them to learn about the tides. Farmers read them to learn about the weather. Almanacs told people how stars and planets moved across the sky. They also told how the moon moved. People still use almanacs today. They read them to learn about the weather. The Farmer's Almanac tells about how the stars and the moon move. It also gives gardening tips.

Banneker published six Farmer's Almanacs. He wrote them between 1792 and 1797. He used information from other people, but he did most of the calculations himself. The almanacs were sold all over the new nation. Many people wanted to buy Banneker's book. They were sold in states as far away from Maryland as Kentucky.

Reading was very important to Benjamin Banneker. He read to learn throughout his life. Banneker was one of the first scientists in the newly formed United States. He had a natural ability in math and science. Reading helped him learn more about how to use those skills. He used the skills to help many people. His almanacs helped farmers. He also predicted many events involving the moon, the sun, and the stars. People used that information to plan different events. Without Banneker, the nation's capital might not look the same as it does today. If he had not taught himself through reading, he would not have been able to do all that he did during his life.




1.

SET A PURPOSE FOR READING

What kind of writing is this? What would you expect to read about in this passage?



2.

SKIM

Look through this paragraph. What is this paragraph generally about?



3.

DETAILS

Why was Benjamin Banneker lucky?



4.

DETAILS

What details in this paragraph support the idea that Banneker was good at math and science?



5.

MAIN IDEA

What is one main idea of this paragraph?



6.

SKIM

What are two things that Banneker is famous for?



7.

SCAN

What did Banneker include in his almanacs?



8.

DETAILS

Why are almanacs important?



9.

SCAN

How many almanacs did Banneker publish?



10.

MAIN IDEA

What is one main idea in this passage?

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